[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 43 (Monday, October 25, 2004)]
[Pages 2422-2423]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Proclamation 7832--National Mammography Day, 2004

 October 15, 2004

 By the President of the United States

 of America

 A Proclamation

    Approximately one in seven women in the United States will develop 
breast cancer over her lifetime. Mammograms are critical for early 
detection of breast cancer and remain the most effective screening tool 
available today. Many women who develop breast cancer have no history of 
the disease in their families, and except for growing older, most have 
no strong risk factors. Regular mammogram screening, along with a 
clinical breast exam by a medical professional, can help identify breast 
cancer in its earliest stages when it is most treatable. On National 
Mammography Day, we underscore the importance of this life-saving 
technology.
    The National Cancer Institute and the United States Preventive 
Services Task Force recommend a mammogram every 1 to 2 years for women 
age 40 and over. Strict guidelines help to ensure that mammograms are 
administered with the lowest possible doses of radiation by the best-
trained medical staff. Scientists continue to study ways to improve 
mammograms and other screening technologies, and this research promises 
to make screening even more accurate and further reduce the number of 
breast cancer deaths.
    My Administration is committed to preventing, detecting, treating, 
and ultimately finding a cure for breast cancer. Through an early 
detection program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we 
have devoted over $200 million for promoting mammography use and helping 
low-income women afford screening for breast and cervical cancer. In 
addition, the National Institutes of Health is conducting the largest 
trial ever of new, early-detection technologies to help doctors target 
breast cancer before symptoms occur.
    My Administration will continue working to ensure that America's 
women have access to the best screening services available. I urge 
women, especially those 40 and over,

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to talk to their doctors about breast cancer screening and to encourage 
their friends and family to do the same. Together, we can help save 
lives and build a healthier future for all our citizens.
    Now, Therefore, I, George W. Bush, President of the United States of 
America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and 
laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 15, 2004, as 
National Mammography Day. I call on all Americans to observe this day 
with appropriate programs and activities recognizing our health care 
professionals and researchers for their contributions in helping to 
detect and treat breast cancer.
    In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this fifteenth day 
of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand four, and of the 
Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and twenty-
ninth.
                                                George W. Bush

 [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., October 19, 
2004]

Note: This proclamation was published in the Federal Register on October 
20. This item was not received in time for publication in the 
appropriate issue.